Our Board & Staff

Michelle Adams is a project manager and fundraising professional with over 12 years of experience in providing excellent client management and oversight of nonprofit fundraising campaigns.  Monica took a Project Management Certificate Program at the University of Phoenix. Monica has had a strong personal and professional connection with the House of Ruth, including previously working with Lautman Maska Neill & Company to manage the organization’s direct mail program as well as being a monthly donor.

Steve Badt has more than 18-years of experience in nonprofit management and project operations. He joined Impact Capital Strategies in 2016 as Operations Manager, where he leads operational management and client support.

Prior to joining Impact Capital Strategies, Steve served as the Senior Director of Kitchen Operations at Miriam’s Kitchen. During his 14-year career at Miriam’s, Steve helped transform a small “soup kitchen” into an award-winning operation. His efforts earned him recognition by The Washington Post, NPR, the Today Show and other top-tier media outlets. In 2009 Steve had the honor of serving alongside First Lady Michele Obama, who volunteered at Miriam’s Kitchen in recognition of its quality programming and focus on nutrition and dignity for Washington’s most vulnerable residents.

Prior to this, Steve spent eight years as a chef in restaurants in Boston, New York City and Washington, D.C., and then transitioned successfully into nonprofit work at Food & Friends, which serves meals to those battling life-challenging illnesses like HIV/AIDS and cancer.

Steve has a Bachelor’s of Arts from the University of Vermont and a Masters of Science in Nonprofit Management from the University of Maryland University College.

He lives in Takoma Park, Maryland, with his wife and two children.

Monica Y. Brame is a Project Management Professional (PMP) with more than 15 years of project management experience and more than 18 years of federal contracting and accounting experience with multiple government agencies, including Montgomery County, MD County Government; Department of Defense (Army); Department of Education; Department of Agriculture; Internal Revenue Service; and several inter-agencies of Health and Human Services agencies, such as Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration’s (SAMHSA) Center for Mental Health Services (CMHS) and Center for Substance Abuse Prevention (CSAP).

Ms. Brame has volunteered for more than 18 years with the National Association of Black Accountants, Inc. (NABA). She has served in multiple leadership roles, including Eastern Region Representative on the National Board of Directors, Eastern Region Vice President, Eastern Region Student Conference Chairperson and past president of the NABA Metropolitan Washington, DC, Chapter. She also serves as an active volunteer in numerous church and community affairs.

Lou Cardenas grew up in Northern Virginia, though he spent much time in Colombia, where the majority of his family still resides. He graduated from Georgetown University and has enjoyed a 30-year successful career in real estate in the D.C. area and Miami. After 25 years in commercial real estate, he made the switch several years ago to residential and is currently Vice President at Compass, where he serves realty clients throughout D.C., Virginia, and Maryland. He has always believed in giving back to his community and has served as President of the Board of Sitar Arts Center, a local after school and summer arts program serving inner city children. He also supports several animal rescue organizations in D.C. and Costa Rica.

Frances Christmon is a health care industry expert and business executive/consultant with over 30 years of service to more than 70 hospitals, physician groups, health plans and other health care entities. She is Founder and Principal of Frances D. Christmon LLC, a business consulting firm that facilitates ethical financial performance and strategic operational evolution for health care organizations. Frances served as Vice President of Strategic Financial and Operational Information for the HSC Health Care in Washington, D.C., between 2007 and 2016. There she supported extensive research into the health care needs and solutions for children with special needs.

Frances is a consistent supporter of several charities, including The Boys and Girls Club, Food for Friends, Jack and Jill Foundation, and House of Ruth. She served on the Board of Directors of Positive Options, Referrals & Alternatives, Inc. (PORA), a nonprofit agency in Springfield, Illinois, that helps transition women out of sex work and to develop healthy, positive lifestyles.

Frances is a past president of the D.C. chapter of Health Care Financial Management Association (HFMA). She received a bachelor’s degree in Sociology and Economics from Tougaloo College in Jackson, Mississippi, and a Master of Business Administration in Healthcare from Howard University.

Christine Davie is a senior consultant within Deloitte’s Real Estate & Location Strategy market offering where she leads her clients in the areas of business transformation, workplace strategies and operations improvement. Prior to joining Deloitte, Christine was a construction engineer at Clark Construction where she scoped and priced contracts for various trades valued at up to $8M, and supported field managers by ensuring the timely and cost-effective completion of site work.

Christine attended the NYU Tandon School of Engineering where she earned her Bachelors of Science in Construction Management. As someone passionate about leadership and personal development, Christine has served in leadership positions across organizations such as the National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE) and the Women in Construction (WIC) Conference. Christine currently serves on the NYU Tandon Alumnae Advisory Council and is a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc.

Andrea Harnett was installed as a Magistrate Judge of the Superior Court of the District of Columbia in January 1985 and retired from the bench in 2014. Judge Harnett graduated from Northwestern University and from Columbia Law School after being named a Harlan Fiske Scholar. Following law school, Judge Harnett worked as an Assistant United States Attorney for 11 years in D.C., prosecuting criminal cases.

While serving as a Magistrate Judge, she worked in the Criminal, Family, and Civil Divisions, and the Domestic Violence Unit of the Superior Court. She was one of the founders of the unique and innovative Domestic Violence Unit and developed an expertise in the civil and criminal responses to domestic violence. In 2004, she helped to organize the court’s Domestic Violence Arraignment Court. She has spoken to many groups and attended many conferences in this field, as a student and as a faculty member.

Since retirement, she has served as a part-time mediator at DC Superior Court and as an active volunteer docent at the US Holocaust Memorial Museum.

Judge Harnett is married to Ben Fisherow, a retired environmental lawyer, and has two sons and two granddaughters. They love to travel.

Elaine Horn is an attorney who represents clients in a broad range of complex civil and commercial litigation matters, with an emphasis in the areas of employment disputes, products liability, and commercial contracts. She is a partner at the law offices of Williams & Connolly LLP where she serves as Co-Chair of the firm’s Employment Litigation and Counseling practice group. Elaine grew up in Fort Worth, Texas, and received degrees from Texas A&M University in journalism and English. She received her JD, with honors, from the University of Chicago Law School, where she was on the Editorial Board of The University of Chicago Law Review. She lives with her family in Silver Spring, Maryland.

Kalise Mabry graduated from the University of the District of Columbia with a Bachelor’s degree in Social Work. Since graduating in 2010 she has had the pleasure of working with a variety of populations that include unhoused families, unhoused individuals, TANF recipients, and foster children. While matriculating at UDC she was a part of the signing of President Bush’s College Cost Reduction and Access Act of 2007. Kalise graduated from Howard University in December 2016 with a Master’s degree in Social Work. She is currently a case manager with her chosen population, unhoused males, at the Coalition for the Emery Work Bed Program. Kalise has five children and one grandchild. She enjoys spending time with her family, watching her favorite television shows, and reading in her spare time.

Patricia Massey is the Senior Vice President of Human Resources for Clark Construction Group, LLC, one of the nation’s most experienced and respected providers of construction services. She specializes in human resources, benefits and compensation and has served in a leadership capacity at major corporations, including Scientech, LLC, Primark/Disclosure, as well as the National Standards Association. Patricia’s community activities include serving as an election judge, mock interviewer for naturalization preparation, and an assistant volunteer coordinator.

Heidi McIntosh is a seasoned leader of child welfare systems, with deep state-level experience as well as thought leadership and advocacy on the national and international stage. Most recently as CEO for First Place for Youth, Heidi directed all the strategy and planning for a national organization that provides housing, employment, education services and critical supports to transition-age foster youth. Also, Heidi focused the organization and the Board of Directors on developing outcomes related to Race, Equity and Inclusion.

Prior to serving as CEO with First Place for Youth, Heidi was the Deputy Director of the National Association of Social Workers, where she directed the strategic design, development and enhancement of programs aimed at strengthening the social work profession for 650,000 social workers nationwide. As a Senior Policy Advisor at the Department of Health and Human Services in the Obama Administration, she provided national leadership for the administration, overseeing comprehensive state and jurisdictional programs totaling $8B.

Previously, Heidi served as Deputy Commissioner for the Connecticut Department of Children and Families, managing a budget of close to $1B across seven regional offices. In this role, she helped to tackle the state’s extreme challenges in disproportionality.

Andrew Miller is Deputy General Counsel, Retail Banking & Retail Lending, for The PNC Financial Services Group, one of the largest super-regional banking organizations in the United States. He and his team provide legal support to PNC’s retail banking, lending and branch operations.

Before joining PNC, Andy was Senior Counsel on the Financial Services Committee of the House of Representatives, where he worked on major pieces of financial legislation during the 111th Congress (2009-10), including the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act. He also has worked as an attorney for the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System and Fannie Mae.

Andy has a Juris Doctor from The Catholic University of America Columbus School of Law and a Bachelor of Arts in English and Economics from Villanova University. He lives in Washington, D.C., with his wife and four children.

Dan Morris is an Emmy award-winning producer, director, writer, and journalist. Since 2008, he has headed up Morris Media, working with clients that include the PBS NewsHour, the MacArthur Foundation, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, the American Cancer Society and WebMD. He spent nearly two decades at ABC News as a producer of Nightline and This Week with George Stephanopoulos, with additional stints at PBS, CBS News and NPR. In 2018 he produced Twelve Stories: Survivors of Domestic Violence Reclaim Their Lives for House of Ruth. He has won the House of Ruth Distinguished Service Award; the RFK Journalism Award for Coverage of the Disadvantaged; the DuPont-Columbia Award; The National Association of Black Journalists “Salute to Excellence” Award; and five News & Documentary Emmy Awards. He majored in English at the University of Michigan, and lives in Alexandria, VA, with his wife when they are not traveling or visiting their grown children.

Ifat Pridan is a former IT professional who turned entrepreneur in 2016. Her Georgetown boutique, LiLi The First, curates international chic to outfit women from all styles of lives.

Ifat put it as a mission to support the local community’s women’s organizations, either with contribution, clothing donation or styling services. She believes that the right outfit is crucial for one’s self confidence and success, and helps setting the attitude of the surroundings towards one. She enjoys sharing her philosophy with women’s groups on the power of style.

Ifat arrived in the US from Israel with her family; prior to owning her own business she worked as a Senior Project Manager/Business Analyst for some of the Fortune 500 companies, including Sprint, Fannie Mae and Amdocs.

Tony Taylor serves as Director of Operations and Compliance at AppleTree Public Charter School in Washington, D.C. He’s been with AppleTree since 2012. He has spent his career working in public service, serving as an appointee with the D.C. Mayor Adrian Fenty and working in charter school operations for the past eight years.

Tony has a degree in Psychology from American University, and he is currently pursuing a Masters in Public Administration from American University.

Gale Thompson is a leadership coach and workshop leader. She enjoys working with all types of professionals who wish to bring more of themselves to their work and life. She believes that cultivating an inner experience of leadership will lead the way from success to fulfillment.

Before becoming an executive coach, Gale had a 25+ year career in management consulting/business development with Accenture and APM, with a focus in healthcare, life sciences, and information technology. Most recently, she focused on convening global cross-organizational and multi-disciplinary teams to craft, sell, and execute healthcare information technology solutions in the U.S. as well as Europe and Asia-Pacific.

Gale has dual-degrees from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania (MBA) and the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies (MA with a concentration in Middle Eastern Affairs). She also received a Fulbright Grant award for study of the Egyptian banking sector.

Upon moving to Washington, D.C., several years ago, she opted to pursue leadership coach training at Georgetown’s Center for Transformational Leadership and is an experienced ICF (International Coach Federation) certified ACC Coach. She has also supported board and committee development for Women’s Way in Philadelphia and is currently spearheading outreach and partnering activities for several not-for-profits on a voluntary basis.

She lives in Washington, D.C., with her husband while their daughter is currently attending college in California.

Helena Valentine and Fred Valentine have been generous supporters of House of Ruth since 2007, and important influencers in Washington, D.C., for many decades before that. She and he are active in the Mu Lambda Fraternity and the Alpha Wives, who volunteer at House of Ruth’s Madison program.

Additionally, they wrote a letter of support to the Clark Foundation, which awarded House of Ruth a transformational gift. Fred Valentine was Vice President at Clark Corporation for many years; he was also a team member of the Washington Senators baseball team.

Helene is a valuable asset to the House of Ruth board, with a long history of serving youth and families. She worked for Catholic Charities for more than 20 years and serves on a variety of community boards that empower women.